TOP STORIES
SenoRx Inc., an Aliso Viejo-based developer of breast cancer devices, is being acquired for $213 million in cash by New Jersey’s C.R. Bard Inc. C.R. Bard, which makes devices used in surgery to treat vascular and urology conditions and cancer, is offering 14% more than what SenoRx was worth before the deal. SenoRx’s board has approved the acquisition, which still needs regulatory and shareholder approvals. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter.
Santa Ana-based Smile Brands Group Inc., which provides support services for dentists, halted its initial public offering late last week, according to a Reuters report citing an undisclosed underwriter. The operator of Bright Now Dental and other brands had been looking to raise $130 million after expenses. It reportedly changed plans after its shares were set to price lower than expected amid Wall Street volatility that caused others to halt offerings as well. Smile has yet to file a formal withdraw of its offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission as of late last week. It’s unclear whether the company might seek to postpone an offering.
TECHNOLOGY
Japan’s Toshiba Corp. is set to combine two consumer electronics divisions in Irvine starting in July. The company is moving its New Jersey-based television unit to Orange County and combining it with its portable computer unit, Irvine-based Toshiba America Information Systems. The move’s impact on jobs in Irvine and New Jersey wasn’t disclosed.
Irvine-based chipmaker Microsemi Corp. lifted its sales outlook for the current quarter. The raised outlook comes on the heels of Microsemi’s $100 million acquisition of Phoenix’s White Electronic Designs Corp., which closed early last week. Including the White Electronic buy, Microsemi said it expects June quarter sales of about $129 million to $131 million, ahead the $123 million analysts had been expecting. The company expects adjusted profits of $24 million to $25 million, in line with the $24 million in profits Wall Street was expecting.
Dwight Decker, a local technology executive whose name once was synonymous with Newport Beach’s Conexant Systems Inc., is retiring from the board of the chipmaker. Decker tried to step back in 2004 but returned in 2005 after a botched combination with New Jersey’s Globespan Virata Inc. Decker handed over the top spot to Scott Mercer, a longtime board member, in 2008.
Aliso Viejo’s Quest Software Inc., a maker of business software, reported first-quarter results that missed Wall Street’s expectations. For the three months through March, Quest saw sales of $171 million, up 3% from a year earlier but just short of analysts’ expected $172 million in revenue. Excluding charges, the company posted $24 million in profits, up 18% but missing analysts’ estimate of $27 million in profits.
Irvine’s Sage Software Inc., a maker of business software, saw sales slip for the six months through March, capping two years of declines. Sage said its North American sales for the six months through March were $429 million, down 6% from a year earlier. The North America business unit didn’t report profits. Sage’s British parent saw sales of $1.14 billion, down 3% from the same period a year earlier.
Santa Ana’s STEC Inc., a maker of flash memory drives, gave a better-than-expected outlook for the current quarter. STEC said it’s looking for second-quarter sales of $48 million to $50 million, surpassing analysts’ average revenue estimate of $37 million. For profits, the company is expecting to break even or a loss of $1.5 million, less than the $5 million loss analysts had been expecting.
HEALTHCARE
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International posted first-quarter financial results that exceeded Wall Street estimates and upped its full-year profit outlook. The Aliso Viejo drug maker posted an adjusted profit of $52.8 million, up 39% from an adjusted profit of $38.1 million in last year’s first quarter. Wall Street projected Valeant’s first-quarter profit to come in at $49.4 million. First-quarter revenue shot up 30% to $232 million. Analysts had been expecting $224.7 million. Valeant raised its 2010 profit forecast to $218.2 million to $238.8 million, up from a previous projection of $201.7 million to $222.3 million. The company also said it is paying $318 million for Lawrenceville, N.J.-based Aton Pharma Inc., a maker of eye drugs and treatments for rare medical conditions.
Masimo Corp. posted first-quarter results that beat analysts’ projections. Masimo reported a first-quarter profit excluding items of $14.3 million, up 10% from a year earlier and surpassing Wall Street estimates of $13.3 million. The Irvine-based device maker’s first-quarter revenue was $98.8 million, up 15% from a year ago and $4 million larger than expectations.
REAL ESTATE
First American Corp.’s CoreLogic unit filed a patent infringement lawsuit against eight competitors claiming products developed by the companies violate First American’s patent for technology used to value real estate. The suit, filed in April, alleges Fiserv, Intellireal, Interthinx, Lender Processing Services, Precision Appraisal Services, Real Data, Realec Technologies and Zillow all sell products and services that violate the First American patent. The filing requests a trial and damages.
APPAREL
Foothill Ranch-based mall retailer Wet Seal Inc. said sales at stores open at least a year fell 6.1% last month, beyond the 2.5% drop analysts were looking for on average. The decline came after a 6.3% gain in same-store sales in March, boosted by an early Easter on April 4, which shifted shopping traditionally seen before the holiday to the end of March.
EDUCATION
Santa Ana-based vocational school operator Corinthian Colleges Inc. topped Wall Street expectations with results for the recently ended quarter but offered a profit outlook for the current one that fell short of expectations. For the three months through June, Corinthian forecast profits of $32 million to $34.6 million, up about 20% from a year earlier but below the $35.5 million analysts had been expecting on average. The company raised its sales outlook for the current quarter, forecasting $472 million to $482 million in revenue, versus $353.5 million in sales in the year-ago quarter. Analysts had been expecting $465.6 million in revenue.
OTHER NEWS
Vermont-based Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. again extended its offer to buy Irvine-based coffee seller Diedrich Coffee Inc. with some indication the long delayed deal soon could move forward. Diedrich is in the process of being acquired for $290 million in cash by Green Mountain, which in December prevailed over Emeryville-based Peet’s Coffee & Tea Inc. in a bidding war. After a series of month-long extensions, Green Mountain’s offer to buy Diedrich was extended by a week to today.
Irvine-based Freedom Communications Inc., owner of the Orange County Register, exited bankruptcy. Freedom filed for bankruptcy in September after trying to strike a deal to appease creditors holding about $1 billion in debt. As part of the company’s reorganization, secured debt holders and investors have taken over ownership in exchange for forgiving about $445 million in debt. Angelo, Gordon & Co., Alden Global Capital, Luxor Capital Group and lenders led by JPMorgan Chase & Co. now own part of the company.
In other Freedom news, former directors and the current chief executive are being sued by unsecured creditors for $180 million. The litigation seeks to collect damages from Freedom’s insurance policy covering executives and directors.
